HP recently released the Slate 8 Pro, an 8-inch Android tablet with a super-high-res display and Nvidia Tegra 4 processor for $329. The high-end specs petered out when it came to the OS, however, as it ships with the older Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

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If you want to be totally up-to-date, HP has the answer for you -- though it will cost you a little bit. The company has stealthily launched the Slate 8 Pro Business edition, which is similar to the non-Business version save for one key difference: It runs the latest version of Android -- 4.4, or KitKat.

Otherwise, the Business model appears to offer similar hardware as the consumer model, from the 1,600x1,200 Gorilla Glass 3-protected display to the 1GB of RAM to the 16GB of solid-state storage. Both feature the Tegra 4 A15 processor, integrated Beats Audio technology, and a black front face backed with a white back panel. The only other notable component distinction is that the Slate 8 Pro Business has built-in NFC capabilities that the other version lacks.

The final difference between the two tablets is in the pricing. You'll pay an additional $20 for the Business model -- call it the KitKat surcharge. While adoption of the newest Android version is growing, it still only accounts for a little more than 5 percent of Android market share. Perhaps the Slate 8 Pro Business edition can nudge that number further upward.

Sean Portnoy started his tech writing career at ZDNet nearly a decade ago. He then spent several years as an editor at Computer Shopper magazine, most recently serving as online executive editor. He received a B.A. from Brown University and an M.A. from the University of Southern California.

Disclosure

Sean Portnoy is a freelance technology journalist; currently, all work that Sean does is on a contractural basis. Sean has also written corporate communications documents for CA.Sean does not accept gifts from companies he covers. All hardware products he writes about are purchased with his own funds or are review units covered under formal loan agreements and are returned after the review is complete.